EFL teachers’ and students’ beliefs about factors affecting students’ participation in group work activities at Hanoi National University of Education

VIET NAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDY  HOÀNG THỊ MINH EFL TEACHERS’ AND STUDENTS’ BELIEFS ABOUT FACTORS AFFECTING STUDENTS’ PARTICIPATION IN GROUP WORK ACTIVITIES AT HANOI NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION (NHẬN THỨC CỦA GIÁO VIÊN VÀ SINH VIÊN VỀ NHỮNG NHÂN TỐ ẢNH HƯỞNG ĐẾN SỰ THAM GIA VÀO HOẠT ĐỘNG NHÓM CỦA SINH VIÊN NGOẠI NGỮ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC SƯ PHẠM HÀ NỘI) M.A Minor Thesis (Chương trình 1) Major : English Language Teaching Methodology Code : 60.14.0111 Hanoi, 2014 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDY  HOÀNG THỊ MINH EFL TEACHERS’ AND STUDENTS’ BELIEFS ABOUT FACTORS AFFECTING STUDENTS’ PARTICIPATION IN GROUP WORK ACTIVITIES AT HANOI NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION (NHẬN THỨC CỦA GIÁO VIÊN VÀ SINH VIÊN VỀ NHỮNG NHÂN TỐ ẢNH HƯỞNG ĐẾN SỰ THAM GIA VÀO HOẠT ĐỘNG NHÓM CỦA SINH VIÊN NGOẠI NGỮ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC SƯ PHẠM HÀ NỘI) M.A Minor Thesis (Chương trình 1) Major : English Language Teaching Methodology Code : 60.14.0111 Supervisor : Dr Nguyễn Đức Hoạt Hanoi, 2014 DECLARATION I hereby certify that the thesis entitled “EFL TEACHERS’ AND STUDENTS’ BELIEFS ABOUT FACTORS AFFECTING STUDENTS’ PARTICIPATION IN GROUP WORK ACTIVITIES AT HANOI NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION” is the result of my own research for the Degree of Master of Arts at University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi and that this thesis has not been submitted for any degree at any other university or tertiary institution Date: Signature: i ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First and foremost, I am indebted to my supervisor, Dr Nguyen Duc Hoat, for his great understanding and wholehearted support throughout the process Without his valuable time, professional guidance and critical feedback for every minor detail, I would not have been able to complete my work My special gratitude is also to be expressed to all the professors, lecturers, teachers, staff and students of the Faculty of Post-graduate Study, University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi for their valuable support, instruction, assistance and materials during my study and investigation at the university I am heartily thankful to many teachers and students of Faculty of English, Hanoi National University of Education who fully supported me in the collection of data and participated in this research Along the way, I owe my deep gratitude to my beloved family and friends who always provided tremendous support and encouragement when I was in the process of completing this study Lastly, I offer my regards and blessings to all those who supported me in any aspect during the completion of the research ii ABSTRACT This survey research, based on the claim that EFL teachers and students highly value the application of group work and students’ participation in group work context, analyzed their beliefs about factors affecting students’ participation in group work activities and highlighted the importance of the conditions underlying effective classroom interaction Quantitative and qualitative data gathered from survey questionnaires and interviews indicate both the similarity and difference in their beliefs These teachers and students appreciated students’ preference to group work, appropriate group task, collaborative interaction; accepted the possibility to use native language; and did not view fully preparing and knowing the right answer as a prerequisite for participation However, while the learners believed that participation was impacted by issues of students’ personality, group composition and teachers’ policy of grading participation; the teachers’ beliefs were not so flexible These results assert the significance of teachers’ and learners’ involvement in classroom research and draw attention to the need to incorporate learners’ beliefs into pedagogy iii TABLE OF CONTENT DECLARATION i ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ii ABSTRACT iii TABLE OF CONTENT iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS vi LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES vii PART I: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale Purpose of the study Research questions Scope of the study Significance of the study Overview of the study PART II: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW 1.1 Teachers’ and students’ beliefs 1.1.1 Definition of beliefs 1.1.2 Role of beliefs 1.1.3 Measurement of beliefs 1.2 Group work 1.2.1 Definition of group work 1.2.2 Elements of effective cooperative learning group work 1.2.3 Benefits of group work 10 1.2.4 Some group work activities 11 1.3 Students’ participation in group work 12 1.3.1 Definition of students’ participation in group work 12 1.3.2 The role of students’ participation in language learning and group work13 iv 1.3.3 Measurement of students’ participation in group work 14 1.3.4 Factors affecting students’ participation in group work 14 1.4 Related previous studies 17 CHAPTER METHODOLOGY 18 2.1 Design and approaches 18 2.2 Context and participants 18 2.3 Data collection instruments 19 2.3.1 Survey questionnaires (Appendix A, B) 19 2.3.2 Interviews (Appendix D, E) 20 2.4 Data analysis methods 21 CHAPTER FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 22 3.1 The similarity between teachers’ and students’ beliefs about factors affecting students’ participation in group work activities 22 3.2 The difference between teachers’ and students’ beliefs about factors affecting students’ participation in group work activities 30 3.3 Both converging and diverging beliefs about factors affecting students’ participation in group work activities between teachers and students 36 PART III: CONCLUSION 43 Main findings 43 Pedagogical implications 43 Limitations and suggestion for further research 44 REFERENCES 46 APPENDIX I Appendix A: Questionnaire for Students .I Appendix B: Questionnaire for Teachers IV Appendix C: Teachers and Students Questionnaire Responses VII Appendix D: Transcripts of Students Interviews IX Appendix E: Transcripts of Teachers Interviews XII Appendix F: Ewald’s (2008) Questionnaire XV v LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS EFL: English as foreign language FOE: Faculty of English HNUE: Hanoi National University of Education I: Interview Q: Questionnaire Std: Student T: Teacher vi LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES Figure 1.2-1 Outcomes of cooperation 10 Figure 3.1-1 Teachers’ and students’ beliefs related to students’ preference to group work 22 Figure 3.1-2 Teachers’ and students’ beliefs related to teachers’ preference to group work 23 Figure 3.1-3 Teachers’ and students’ beliefs related to the requirement of students’ preparedness to participation 24 Figure 3.1-4 Teachers’ and students’ beliefs related to students’ attitude to errors 26 Figure 3.1-5 Teachers’ and students’ beliefs related to possibility to use native language 27 Figure 3.1-6 Teachers’ and students’ beliefs related to the nature of group task 29 Figure 3.2-1 Teachers’ and students’ beliefs related to students’ personality 30 Figure 3.2-2 Teachers’ and students’ beliefs related to group composition 33 Figure 3.2-3 Teachers’ and students’ beliefs related to teachers’ policy of grading participation 35 Figure 3.3-1 Teachers’ and students’ beliefs related to collaborative interaction (workload sharing) 38 Figure 3.3-2 Teachers’ and students’ beliefs related to collaborative interaction (interaction with group members or instructors) 39 vii PART I: INTRODUCTION Rationale Along with the development of communicative language teaching approach from the late 1970s, collaborative group work is increasingly being seen as an indispensable component in teaching and learning the second and foreign language with the expectation to focus on communicatively authentic language use in real contexts (Burns, 2009: 11) This is also true for most courses at colleges in Vietnam in general and at Faculty of English, Hanoi National University of Education in particular In comparison with competitively and individualistically structured learning, this form of cooperative learning has some valuable benefits that are affirmed by Johnson and Johnson: higher successful mastery, retention and transfer of concepts, rules and principles; higher and more intrinsically-oriented learning motivation; more facilitated cognitive and social development; more positive attitudes to teachers, other school personnel, subject areas, school, and other classmates; more positive self-esteem and psychological health (Johnson and Johnson, 1974, 1975; Johnson, 1979 cited in Smith, 1979: 24) However, their group work is not always satisfactory and successful The achievement of the benefits associated with group work depends on the effectiveness of members in working together and functioning as a group (Hasan & Ali, 2007: 230) In other words, the effectiveness of group work partly depends on group members’ participation, which are influenced by many factors related to the students, the teachers, the group task, and the learning environment (Lee, 2005; Donohue & Richards, 2009; Sovajassatakul, 2008; Tran, 2005; Phung, 2006; Pham, 2011; Le, 2011) Sometimes students seem to be very active in group work but sometimes they remain quiet, engage in off-task behavior and have minimal attempts to participate Their teachers, unfortunately, not always pay attention to this or just neglect this habitual behavior to keep the learners working in group Appendix B: Questionnaire for Teachers This survey questionnaire is designed for the study of teachers’ and students’ perception on factors that influence EFL students’ participation in group work activities Your assistance in completing the following items is highly appreciated All the information provided by you is of great use and solely for the study purpose Thank you! I General information How many years have you taught English? ……….…………………………… What level have you taught and for how long? ……….…………………… As a teachers, you regularly apply group work in the class(es) you teach? … ………YES / NO…………… As a student, did you work in groups when you took language courses? … ………YES / NO…………… II Teachers’ perception on students’ participation in group work activities Indicate whether you mostly agree (MA) or mostly disagree (MD) with the following statements by crossing (X) in the right columns Clarify your position MA Students like to work in groups in English class - Clarification:……………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………… ……… If one group member does not the homework or prepare for group work, he/ she shouldn’t say anything - Clarification:……………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………… ……… If one member is too introverted and does not participate, other members should complete the task - Clarification:……………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………… ……… IV MD If a member doesn’t know the right answers when working in a group in class, he/ she shouldn’t say anything - Clarification:……………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………… ……… It is better to work in groups with the same people throughout the course -Clarification:……………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………… ……… It’s okay if one person in a small group talks more than everyone else - Clarification:……………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………… ……… It’s preferable for students to direct questions to the instructor than to their partner(s) - Clarification:……………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………… ……… Individual group members should be graded or marked differently based on their level of engagement in group work - Clarification:……………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………… ……… If students don’t understand the group activity, they should ask the instructor for clarification in their native language - Clarification:……………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………… ……… 10 If the task for group work is too difficult or boring, students often distract from group work - Clarification:……………………………………………………… V ……………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………… ……… 11 As an instructor, I like to apply group work in my English class - Clarification:……………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………… ……… Thank you very much for your kindly assistance! VI Appendix C: Teachers and Students Questionnaire Responses Neither or Teachers and students questionnaire MA MA MD MD statements both responses selected Students like to work in groups in English class T Std T Std T Std 20 0 11 20 0 16 2 11 20 0 11 10 12 10 0 11 11 11 0 22 0 If one group member does not the homework or prepare for group work, he/ she shouldn’t say anything If one member is too introverted and does not participate, other members should complete the task If a member doesn’t know the right answers when working in a group in class, he/ she shouldn’t say anything It is better to work in groups with the same people throughout the course It’s okay if one person in a small group talks more than everyone else It’s preferable for students to direct questions to the instructor than to their partner(s) Individual group members should be graded or marked differently based on their level of engagement in group work VII If students don’t understand the group activity, they should ask the instructor for 10 21 1 0 16 0 11 22 0 0 clarification in their native language 10 If the task for group work is too difficult or boring, students often distract from group work 11 Teachers like to apply group work in their English class VIII Appendix D: Transcripts of Students Interviews Questions to interview: What would you if one of your group members arrived to class without having completed homework or prepare for the lesson and your instructor asked you to review this exercise/activity in a group? What would you if you worked in a group in which one member tended to be shy, quiet and does not participate much while another member was more extroverted and more active when doing the task? What would you if you are given an activity to complete in a small group in class and you finish it before other groups? What would you if you were given instructions in English for a task to be completed in a group but when the teacher stopped talking and you were supposed to start to work, you didn’t know what you had been asked to do? Responses to interview: Student 1: I will help him/ her to understand what to and advice him/ her to discuss what he/ she is unclear about He/ she shouldn’t ignore other group members’ suggestions He/ she should participate in group work With the person who is quite, I will ask her some questions related to the content of the activity in order for him/ her to speak her mind If possible, I will give him/ her some compliments To the person who is extroverted and actively completes the task, I will ask everyone to take turns to talk about their ideas and stop him/ her for a while if necessary After finishing an activity early, the group members should recheck their work attainment and ask teacher to check and comment IX I’d ask teacher to speak instruction again, even ask teacher to translate the instruction Student 2: We will ask this partner to finish his/ her homework while we are doing the reviewing When it comes to the part that he/ she knows or gets familiar with, we’ll let him/ her answer and then check together We would ask this partner to finish his/ her homework while we were doing the reviewing When it came to the part that he/ she knew or got familiar with, we’d let him/ her answer and then check together The extra time should be used to recall or consolidate what have just been taught in the lesson I’d ask my group members to explain the instruction again If they were not sure either, I’d ask my instructor Student 3: If possible, the whole group would help that member to finish his/ her homework and understand the issues Ask the timid member to actively participate and distribute some parts of the task to him/ her The extroverted one can help him/ her If I were a member in this group, I would try to stir the atmosphere in my group by discussing more about the activity or elicit different activities I ask friends next to me, sometimes I ask my teacher Student 4: In this situation, I would ask him/ her to review the lesson as quickly as possible and proposed other members to help X I came and worked in pair with quite student by asking some questions in the lesson to involve my partner to participate with activities I would take my time to check again what I had done and try to find out the mistakes I had made If there were something unclear I would ask my teacher to better my work if possible I would ask my friends for clearer understanding Student 5: Other members would discuss the issues for him/ her to listen and have general ideas about the issues After that, the one who did not prepare have to raise his/ her voice to share his/ her understanding and opinion I would stop the active member for a while and ask that quiet one to share his/ her thought Our group will have to look at our result again to make sure it is good enough, check and correct mistakes if there are some If everything is ok, we will ask teacher for more activities when waiting for other groups If there is no more activity, we can talk freely I would directly ask teacher, who gives the task so that I can understand exactly what to XI Appendix E: Transcripts of Teachers Interviews Questions to interview: What would you if in a group of your students, one member came to class without preparing his or her homework or did not prepare anything to discuss? What would you if in a group, there is one member who tends to be quiet and shy while the others seem to be much more extroverted? In your opinion, is it necessary to vary topics and activities for your students’ group work? In your opinion, what makes your students’ group work effective? Responses to the interview: Teacher 1: I would ask that student to review the work as quickly as possible He or she may ask other partners for guidance and assistance about his or her part And of course, his or her mark would be lower than others’ Actually, I have my students work in group so that those who are timid and shy can raise their voices You know, group work has a kind of less stressful atmosphere where students work with each other, share right or wrong ideas without the fear of losing their face So group work is a good opportunity for these students… Members in the group may help each other Of course Different activities can help students less bored and not neglect the lesson, especially some groups who finish before others Everyone is responsible for their group work and interact actively Teacher 2: First, he should be punished whatever reason he had And, if there’s only one student who did not prepare, he would have to listen and follow others then gave his own ideas based on what he got from his partners If there were many unprepared, I would leave them some minutes to check their homework and have an overview of the topic before discussing with each other and the task XII It doesn’t matter All students are different I often mix students with different personality with each other because they are friends and they can feel free and more confident to talk to each other rather than be nervous when talking to the whole class or teacher Definitely Different topics and activities help to keep students engaged They often learn better if the topics are familiar with them and suitable to their language level The most important thing to make group interaction successful is that everyone has to participate They share knowledge, experiences and ideas with each other It’s also the purpose of group work Teacher 3: Let other members generalize the topic, discuss with each other and ask him or her to review Observe the group, give some comments as a participant and elicit the quiet member to share his or her ideas Why not? There is abundance of interesting topics and activities to select, so there is no excuse not to vary them to make students interested All members have chances to speak out their opinions and manage to share the equal work Teacher 4: I would minus his/ her participation mark, but of course, he/ she still had to engage in the group work at class He/ she could listen to other members while rereading the homework requirement and share his/ her ideas about the topic among his/ her group Stand close to that group, listen to them and give some suggestions to get all members involved No students keep silent if the teacher takes part in their group’s activity with gentle and contributive manner XIII Of course The both topics and activities should be varied, interesting, and suitable If not, students will get bored and not want to participate All members can share leadership and have appropriate ways of making decisions Students create cohesive climate, help each other to finish the task and give positive feedback to each other Teacher 5: I would ask him or her to discuss with other members to have a general idea about the task, listen to them and give his/ her opinion I would let the group manage themselves and require all members to contribute to the task so that all of them can raise their voices It is not necessary to force the shy students because it may not affect much on group work Speaking in pairs or group work is quite relaxing and they can perform well Being noisy and loudly is not the target of speaking Yes If there are not extra activities, off-task behavior is inevitable among better students who finish their work early First, every member is clear about their group’s goal Second, all of them contribute to the common work as much as possible Third, group members help each other to complete the task and develop their skills Fourth, group members encourage each other to exchange their viewpoints and share information XIV Appendix F: Ewald’s (2008) Questionnaire Questionnaire for the students Indicate whether you mostly agree (MA) or mostly disagree (MD) with the following statements by circling the appropriate letters Comment to clarify your position MA MD If I don’t know the right answers when working in a small group in class, I shouldn’t say anything Comments: MA MD It is better to work in small groups with the same people throughout the quarter Comments: MA MD If someone in a small group doesn’t participate, the others should complete the task Comments: MA MD If you don’t understand the group activity, you should ask the instructor for clarification in English Comments: MA MD When a group has completed an activity, members should wait for further instructions Comments: MA MD It’s preferable to direct questions to the instructor than to your partner(s) Comments: MA MD When a group finishes an activity early, the group members should use the extra time to work on homework Comments: XV MA MD It’s okay if one person in a small group talks more than everybody else Comments: MA MD It is better to work in small groups with different people throughout the quarter Comments: MA MD 10 I like to work in small groups in Spanish class Comments: Questionnaire for the teachers Date: _ Name: Native Language: 2nd / 3rd languages: _ How many years have you taught Spanish? What level have you taught and for how long? Do you as a teacher regularly incorporate small group work in the class(es) you teach? YES NO Did you work in small groups as a student when you took language courses? YES NO Indicate whether you mostly agree (MA) or mostly disagree (MD) with the following statements by circling the appropriate letters Comment to clarify your position MA MD If a student doesn’t know the right answers when working in a small group in class, the student shouldn’t say anything Comments: XVI MA MD It is better for students to work in small groups with the same people throughout the quarter Comments: MA MD If someone in a small group doesn’t participate, other members should complete the task Comments: MA MD If a student doesn’t understand the group activity, the student should ask the instructor for clarification in English Comments: MA MD When a group has completed an activity, members should wait for further instructions Comments: MA MD It’s preferable for a student to direct questions to the instructor than to fellow group members Comments: MA MD When a group finishes an activity early, the group members should use the extra time to work on homework Comments: MA MD It’s okay if one person in a small group talks more than everybody else Comments: MA MD It is better to work in small groups with different people throughout the quarter Comments: MA MD 10 Students like to work in small groups in Spanish class Comments: MA MD 11 As an instructor, I like to incorporate small group work in my Spanish class Comments: XVII Short Answer: 12 Why you (or don’t you) use small group work in the classroom and in what situations? 13 Do you think small group work is effective in a language classroom? For what? Why or why not? XVIII ... thesis entitled ? ?EFL TEACHERS’ AND STUDENTS’ BELIEFS ABOUT FACTORS AFFECTING STUDENTS’ PARTICIPATION IN GROUP WORK ACTIVITIES AT HANOI NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF EDUCATION? ?? is the result of my own research... teachers’ and students’ beliefs about factors affecting students’ participation in group work activities 30 3.3 Both converging and diverging beliefs about factors affecting students’ participation. ..VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDY  HOÀNG THỊ MINH EFL TEACHERS’ AND STUDENTS’ BELIEFS ABOUT FACTORS AFFECTING STUDENTS’